ACTIVCORE® cured my neck and shoulder pain

When we first started doing ActivCore ® , we couldn’t wait to try every exercise that we could get my hands on. As dancers, we’re also always first enticed by the exercises for the legs and the core… the upper body exercises have always been a secondary focus. However, as we began the training and learned more about ActivCore’s amazing ability to get the right muscle to fire in the right amount at the right time, we started wondering if there was any hope for the nagging neck and shoulder pain that we had been silently suffering with off and on for years. Katherine had lost hope that anything would make her pain go away. It had actually become so bad that I couldn’t finish the last sip in a tall glass of water without being forced to support the weight of my head in my free hand!!

To our amazement, the secret recipe for completely “fixing” shoulder and neck pain was ActivCore ® … particularly the pull ups and the push ups. Who knew?! The first time we tried the pull ups (not being able to do a single pull up on my own), we knew we were using our legs more than our arms, but we LOVED the way it opened my shoulders and how we were so connected through our backs. Because ActivCore ® allows you to set the difficulty appropriate to your own personal strength level, you really can’t go wrong. We have all our clients doing their own personal pull ups with the ActivCore Activation Station ® because of its incredible adjustability.

With the push ups, because the ropes are unstable every direction except straight down, we were total wrecks…. both of us on the left side (for different reasons, we promise!!! We’re not clones!!!) Neither of us could really complete one push up without our left arms freaking out and shaking like gangbusters. We couldn’t keep the rope still!! ….And that’s when it hit us. None of the local stabilizers in the left shoulder were firing. It was like they were on vacation on another planet. The solution? Find the setting on the ActivCore Activation Station n® that would allow us to complete four push ups without collapsing or shaking uncontrollably. Then I repeated three more sets of four, adjusting the height of the ropes or where I was standing so that I could alter the level of support.

In the first week, we probably did the pull up and push up sequence 2 times….. that’s a total of about 32 pull ups and push ups, and both our shoulders and necks felt better after that one week, not to mention that we felt like our posture improved immensely. (…And we’re not the only ones who’ve said this! One of our best friends and workout buddies said to us the day after doing one set of pull ups: “Could it really be possible that my posture is better after only one session????” The answer: yes!)

Now, we’re completely addicted to the pull ups and push ups!! Katherine’s neck pain is gone, and I no longer have to hold the back of my head when I’m enjoying my last sip of my favorite beverage. Kimberly’s rotator cuff pain is gone, too! We make both push ups and pull ups a mandatory part of our ActivCore ® workout sessions, and as a result we have happier necks and shoulders!!